Medical Myths, Lies and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us (The Teaching Company)

Medical Myths Lies and Half Truths What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us The Teaching Company True or false Eight glasses of water a day are mandatory for staying hydrated Vitamin C protects you from catching a cold Frequent snacking is the quickest way to bust your diet Natural foods are alwa

Title: Medical Myths, Lies and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us (The Teaching Company)

Author: Steven Novella

ISBN: null

Page: 441

Format: Audiobook

True or false Eight glasses of water a day are mandatory for staying hydrated Vitamin C protects you from catching a cold Frequent snacking is the quickest way to bust your diet Natural foods are always better for you You hear advice like this all the time But what do these four nuggets of so called medical wisdom have in common They re all myths, half truths, and mTrue or false Eight glasses of water a day are mandatory for staying hydrated Vitamin C protects you from catching a cold Frequent snacking is the quickest way to bust your diet Natural foods are always better for you You hear advice like this all the time But what do these four nuggets of so called medical wisdom have in common They re all myths, half truths, and misconceptions pieces of information so familiar we take them for granted without truly considering the scientific truth behind them.In today s information age, when supposedly accurate medical advice and diagnoses can be found online with the click of a computer mouse, medical myths are all around us But much of this information isn t true, and using it to make decisions about your own health whether it s how to treat the symptoms of the common cold or how to care for a child or aging relative can be harmful Even deadly.Because you are the one who s ultimately responsible for your own health, it s critical to understand the accuracy of medical information to break down the growing body of misinformation and discover the truth about everyday health and well being.1 Medical Knowledge versus Misinformation2 Myths about Water and Hydration3 Vitamin and Nutrition Myths4 Dieting Separating Myths from Facts5 The Fallacy That Natural Is Always Better6 Probiotics and Our Bacterial Friends7 Sugar and Hyperactivity8 Antioxidants Hype versus Reality9 The Common Cold10 Vaccination Benefits How Well Vaccines Work11 Vaccination Risks Real and Imagined12 Antibiotics, Germs, and Hygiene13 Vague Symptoms and Fuzzy Diagnoses14 Herbalism and Herbal Medicines15 Homeopathy One Giant Myth16 Facts about Toxins and Myths about Detox17 Myths about Acupuncture s Past and Benefits18 Myths about Magnets, Microwaves, Cell Phones19 All about Hypnosis20 Myths about Coma and Consciousness21 What Placebos Can and Cannot Do22 Myths about Pregnancy23 Medical Myths from around the World24 Roundup Decluttering Our Mental Closet

One thought on “Medical Myths, Lies and Half-Truths: What We Think We Know May Be Hurting Us (The Teaching Company)”

One of the best Great Courses I've listened to. I've heard most of these myths and believed quite a few of them, until now. Recommended for everyone. Very professional, grounded, helpful, applicable and relevant. Brought up some heated family discussions :)1 Medical Knowledge versus Misinformation2 Myths about Water and Hydration3 Vitamin and Nutrition Myths4 Dieting—Separating Myths from Facts5 The Fallacy That Natural Is Always Better6 Probiotics and Our Bacterial Friends7 Sugar and Hyperact [...]

Do not even bother - I had my audible credit refunded for this one. I only made it through the nutrition and diet chapters which was enough to know that he is merely spewing out the same unsupported claims from ancient medical textbooks and poorly done studies. If his early chapters were so bad, I don't even want to think about what was to come.

I already knew a lot of these myths, but I'd guess the average person probably doesn't. It was interesting anyway, and often even though I knee certain things were untrue, I wasn't fully aware of how they'd been disproved. I do think a couple of the lectures dragged on, but overall I'd recommend the series.

This was a fascinating book. It would be easy to simply say 'see all this stuff you think, it's all rubbish'. But the book doesn't. It takes a wide variety of subjects and examines the scientific basis for the claims and readily admits where there may be a kernel of truth. The majority of subjects covered I already had suspicion about but was surprised by probiotics being included as not helpful. Just goes to show you should always look for the scientific evidence. It's a long book but for the d [...]

Steven Novella is a wonderful lecturer and manages a great podcast. He is definitely an authority on the content of this course; however, about halfway through, the lectures became stale. Don't get me wrong, the first half was informative and worthwhile, but you could feel the lectures slow down once the main myths had been covered. It almost felt as though the lecture was dragged out twice as long to fill an entire course.

I rated this book as five stars but, it isn't so much because it is entertaining as because it is important. While many of the myths are interesting to read about, the discussion of so many does begin to get tedious. My fear is that the people who believe such myths are not the ones who are likely to read this book.

Although realizing that you were wrong (even as much as your whole adult life) about something is not a very pleasant situation, I prefer to do so on regular basis, rather than remaining ignorant of my surroundings.